STVF MARKET | Spotlight Overseas Markets and Build an International Platform

Since its opening of on June 19, STVF Market of the 28th Shanghai TV Festival TV Market (STVF) has not only brought in exhibitors from home and abroad, but also built an international platform with rich market activities to promote Chinese culture, which has gained active market response and reputation.

In recent years, many domestic films and TV dramas have sounded the trumpet of going global. Among them, to release works on online cross-border film and television platforms has become one of the major channels to promote domestic works among a wider range of overseas audiences. As a result, the international promotion of TV dramas has also become a key issue for major media companies to explore. On the morning of June 20, STVF Market held a market event “Focus on overseas - How to create an international hit for TV content?” The promotion and salon series under this theme have invited promoters and heads for overseas business from China, Japan, Malaysia and France to discuss the needs and changes of the current international TV market, analyze the challenges and future directions of international TV market sales, and exchange views on the methods and techniques of creating TV drama hits.

At the event, Zhou Yu, General Manager of SMG Pictures and Wings Media, introduced the rich international cooperation cases and powerful copyright operation of the above two companies, and their practices of “to go global and to bring in through co-production” in various modes, with the Chinese variety program OUR SONG as an example. She said that the content of Chinese film and television works is becoming more and more diverse, so that overseas platforms will know the different facets of China and become interested in more themes, “Overseas audiences are curious about Chinese works, but the quality of our output should be high and the story should be appealing, which is at the core.” She also expected that Chinese players can work together to go global and create more international hits. 

Jia Yao, Deputy Chief Editor of Huace Group’s Beijing Business Division, highlighted the online drama HERE WE MEET AGAIN, which has been very popular since its launch on Tencent’s platform and has also excelled overseas: it was ranked the top Chinese drama on Rakuten Viki, the top hot drama in several countries on WeTV, the top in Singapore region on Viu, and also ranked the third among Astro’s top 10 Chinese dramas. The drama was simultaneously launched overseas in English, Russian, French, Spanish and Arabic, and was well received and acclaimed by overseas viewers. The footage and second-created episodes on international social media platforms have sparked more than 170,000 interactions and over 1.4 million plays; and its TIKTOK topic were viewed more than 160 million times. The overseas popularity of this drama has demonstrated Huace Group’s initial aspiration of telling Chinese stories, showcasing China’s image and spreading Chinese values, and the persistent efforts made “to go global”. He also mentioned that in the context of the global prevalence of short-form video content, short videos are influencing the content of long-form videos, with a lot of synergy developing between the two.

On the one hand, second-created dramas that trigger discussions help extend and interpret TV works in a richer and more comprehensive way; on the other hand, the emergence of micro-short dramas and the exploration of multi-dimensional perspectives for movies and TV hits will bring to the audience’s more interactive experience and push forward the boundary of imagination.

Wang Wen, Vice President and Head of Film Studio of Stellar, introduced the company’s “Four Sectors” and “Four Tracks” for the film and television industry, starting from the hit costume drama LOVE BETWEEN FAIRY AND DEVIL, hoping to tell Chinese stories and spread Chinese traditional culture to the world. The drama was released globally last year and scored well on various top lists in Korea, India and Thailand, becoming an international hit last year. In her opinion, the success of LOVE BETWEEN FAIRY AND DEVIL proves that costume dramas are still the most popular genre in overseas markets, and such works rooted in the soil of unique culture are difficult to be simply copied, while its pure core - love and peace - are the common pursuit and dream of all human beings, which is the key to winning overseas audience. In addition, creating emotional resonance is also a decisive factor for a hit.

Ayako Tajima, Deputy Director of Content Division, Global Business Bureau of Nippon TV, introduced the latest Japanese drama, REBOOTING, which was shortlisted for the Best Foreign TV Series for this year’s Magnolia Awards, and demonstrated Nippon Television’s strong TV production capabilities through six short videos, hoping to work together with international partners for innovations in development.

Priyanka Sridarane, Head of Sales for Asia of RX MIP, said that as the organizer of exhibitions in the content market, they have seen the increasing growth of content of “Chinese productions”, from costume dramas, Chinese animations, documentaries, to Chinese reality shows and variety shows, which are becoming more and more popular in the international market and appearing more and more frequently on the screen. So, she is very confident in the export of Chinese TV content!

Desiree Tan, Senior Purchasing and Distribution Specialist from ASTRO, a Malaysian media and entertainment group, presented four Malaysian TV productions. These works discuss the complexity of life from multiple dimensions and peer into the hidden social issues from multiple perspectives. She also expected that more good stories will be brought to the fore of the international stage.

STVF Market will plow more efforts to build an international film and television platform to showcasing China’s cultural charm. And it will also enhance exchanges and cooperation with overseas markets through the introduction and export of quality film and television works, to continuously amplify the international influence of China’s film and television industry, truly meet the expectations of overseas markets and gain wider international recognition through unremitting efforts.